OTTUMWA —
After years of architectural designs, financial planning and public meetings, the board will finally get to walk the halls of the school building currently being built on Ottumwa’s south side.
So far, the board hasn’t been inside the structure.
“They’ve just driven by,” said Superintendent Davis Eidahl. “We’ve seen it numerous times on paper and on slides, but we’ve never actually stood in the presence of the building.”
The site tour will come at the end of the Ottumwa school board meeting Monday, which, this time, will take place in the library at Evans Middle School.
Now is a good time to check out their investment, Eidahl said.
“Almost all of the walls are up. We’ve seen it numerous times on paper and on Powerpoint slides, but we’ve never actually stood in the presence of the building.”
Since it’s a construction site, board members will be required to wear hard hats as they tour both the grounds and parts of the building’s interior.
But before they go over to the Mary Street site, the school board is expected to approve the “annual student achievement goal and recommendations.”
Those academic targets don’t come from the state, Eidahl said. The Ottumwa school district Community Advisory group is made up of teachers, parents, business people and students interested in how the school does its job. The board recently met with the advisory to hear recommendations for the upcoming year.
In past years, those suggestions have been approved unanimously.
Other items on the agenda Monday include election of a board president and vice president, as well as voting on whether to continue to have school board meetings at 6 p.m. on the second Monday of each month.
Also under discussion will be school calendar revisions for this current school year.
Local News
Board plans tour of new school
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